Bill James ranks Felix as top young talent in baseball

Baseball analyst Bill James has named Seattle Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez the No. 1 player on his list of the top 20 young major-league talents.

Felix Hernandez

James, in the third year of his “Young Talent Inventory,” rates the up-and-coming players on each of the Major League’s 30 teams. He placed the Mariners 18th overall in his rankings with this note:

“The Mariners have gained ground in the last two years; they ranked 25th two years ago. They are above the median in young pitching, led, of course, by Felix Hernandez. Their top five: Felix, Jose Lopez, Franklin Gutierrez, Cliff Lee and David Aardsma.”

James puts Tampa Bay No. 1 in the team category.

Here is his list of the top 20 “most valuable properties” among young players, with their age in parentheses: